Thunderstorm
by fatchineseboy
Summary: He felt so useless...until she came. DemyxLarxene Currently on hiatus for rewriting.
1. Reflections through a rainy window

Thunderstorm

A field.

A meadow. Flowers.

Grass. Pleasant and cool grass.

Her.

Running. Sweating.

Them.

Chasing.

Her.

Stealing.

Snatching.

Ripping.

Tearing.

Crying.

Her.

Darkness.

The gentle pitter-patter of the pouring rain gently touched the glass window, each small droplet colliding with the hard surface, the very glass trembling as it did so. A man in a large black cloak absent mindedly glided his body near the window, his feet not making any noises as they touched the cold ground. As he moved his tall form towards the window, he seated himself down on the small ledge, looking down at the rain swept world below him. Small ripples were being made in the large puddles that had formed, each droplet viciously splashing into the ground, spreading it chaotic energy everywhere.

The man in the hood turned slightly as he drew a large pallid blue instrument and began to pluck the strings emptily. Each sound the vibrating strings made brought a slight joy to his heart. They seemed to pierce the wailing darkness of the world and also seemed to gently resonate with the pouring rain outside. The Nobody stared out at the pouring rain with a dull smile on his face. He loved the rain more than anything else as it embodied a deep type of peace and freedom. A part of him knew that all emotions that were felt inside his body were impossible and fake. However, another part of him viewed those thoughts as impossible. Though he didn't have a heart, he still had a mind, and at least that counted.

A melodious tune that was both melancholy and joyous loomed out from the sitar as the man threw back his hood revealing a young and unusually sad face. The man in the black hood was nothing but a boy that wasn't a day over 17. After all, mere shells of hearts could not age, nor could they sleep or eat. Throughout the years Xenmas and the others had watched those with hearts with a small envy. Each and every one of Organization 11 couldn't partake in any human tasks. It was painful to just view others as they blissfully enjoyed their lives. But, that was why the Organization was formed in the first place; to share the hatred and envy of those who had hearts. They were like a family, even though they didn't act like it at all.

It was extremely true that members didn't get along at all. In fact, Demyx (that was what they called him now, or so he had been told.) was fortunate enough to be one of the members who wasn't despised or hated, while Marluxia often fought with other members (and lost quite terribly due to his inexperience). Still though, what Xaldin had said the previous day still troubled him. The man had called him useless, meaningless baggage that was to be disregarded. Those very words had pierced Demyx's heart, though he knew quite clearly that he didn't have one. However, what he had left of one still burned within his body with slight anger.

Sure, he had screwed up a few missions and was by far the weakest member of all 11 of the Organization, but hey; he had tried his best, always trying to put what was best for the Organization first. He wasn't very good at fighting and all he could do was create small water clones that, given enough time, would explode and immerse the area in water. Unfortunately, many foes could easily destroy these clones in the given time, forcing Demyx to unleash his amazing second technique on them; running.

Thanks to his affinity with water and the portals that the Organization used, Demyx could easily escape quickly, using clever decoys to distract his enemies while he disappeared back into the World that Never Was through his portals. Demyx was naïve and easy to deceive as he would often engage in long conversations with his foes, distracting himself. That factor alone separated him from the rest of the Organization and made him feel like an outcast.

The distant thumping of the rain could still be heard through the thick glass as it continued its assault, each single raindrop slamming itself against the glass. Alone, they could do nothing, but together the rain was a force to be reckoned with. However, he was just another raindrop, an unwanted nuisance that could easily be swatted away.

"Man; I was better off as a heartless," he muttered to himself. "Who needs a shell like me anyways?"

Now that he thought of it, no one in the Organization thought anything of him at all. Even to them he was a nuisance and it was pure sadism that Xenmas sent him on insanely difficult missions just to see him fail. To the rest of the Organization he was dirt; a freak and nothing more. It sickened him to even think about how he even got this far into the Organization.

At first, it had been blissful arrogance. Demyx had easily drifted down the ranks, as various nobodies were taken away from him. He was reduced to using Dusks (which were "completely lame" in Demyx's own vocabulary) to do his bidding. The usual entourage of dancers that he had picked out never came when he called them much to the other member's amusement.

_The other members…_

As Demyx's mind crossed paths with the other members, his lower lip trembled. They were all so much better than him at everything. How could he compare to Marluxia; with his amazing scythe skills, or Luxord with his amazing luck? Axel's gift of flames was almost a wonder to Demyx's eyes and Saix's peer skill was almost as sharp as his words. After those members, it came down to the first six. All of them were practically irreplaceable and their skills were a necessity.

Sighing slightly, Demyx placed his gloved hand up to the window causing the raindrops that had gathered on the other side to gather into a focal point around his palm. He lightly guided the small ball of water around through the window until it eventually was forced down by gravity. The teen let out a cry of frustration and bent back over his sitar, his hands almost moving automatically as they touched the solid strings.

_What was he even good for anyways?_

That thought alone bothered him. Even a lone dusk could accomplish more than him. In fact, dusks were usually a force to be reckoned with (against innocent civilians), while Demyx was not. Though he wore a mask of naivety, it still hurt him to think that he was useless. Xaldin would placidly remind him that every time he passed the coal black haired man. In a way, Demyx loathed him and sometimes he wanted to strike the man. But he knew all too well that Xaldin was his superior in practically every way.

Hatred was a feeling that was omnipresent amongst members of the Organization and though they were called emotionless, they did have passion and memories. Memories of what it felt like to have these emotions. Some; like Xaldin, refused these emotions promptly, but others, like Demyx, cherished each and every one of them. Most of the Organization viewed Demyx's actions as pathetic, as he prioritized these memories and pathetically clung to the belief that he was a full person with a heart.

Demyx moaned under his breath as he continued to pluck the sitar strings, his fresh wound from the last Organization mission still burning. The Dusks had barely saved him from that stupid King Triton back in Atlantica. Xenmas had said that it would be a perfect opportunity for Demyx to train, as his own element surrounded him. Unfortunately for Demyx, he wasn't able to conjure any water or channel it due to the fact that he was in a body of water. The whole tail thing didn't make his life any easier. The colour pink was so completely lame.

Of course, while he was meekly fumbling around to attempt to summon his trusty sitar, the Dusks (who were gently drifting through the sea) had been spotted by the locals. It was at that moment that Demyx had received severe electrical burns from the ruler of the area and was once again forced to flee back through the darkness.

While traveling through portals, Demyx would always feel the uneasy tendrils of Darkness attacking his black cloaked form. The Dusks would disappear at this time, leaving Demyx alone in the cold darkness. The tedium of the darkness would tire the Nobody and he sometimes felt the tendrils try to pierce him. It was an uncomfortable feeling to say the least, like he was running away from his troubles.

Then again; he had always been running. Since his days as a human, he was always running away from anything. Whether it had been the law enforcement, just his problems, Demyx had been a coward at heart. Each memory was so vivid to Demyx, but it was so veiled. He could remember snippets of each part of his life that gradually grew more real as time passed. Demyx eagerly waited for the moment that the memories would become real; when the Organization entered Kingdom Hearts.

Still though, each of these memories seemed empty and void. There was a person that he had seemed to forget, someone who had been close to him back when he was known as Myde. Perhaps once he was done with the Organization, he would try to find this person and thank them properly; for what they had done to him. What they had exactly done to Demyx (or Myde, as he was called back them) was unknown to Demyx at the time, and a small bit of it fascinated him.

But that was pointless drabbling. Besides, Demyx needed to heal his wound quickly. After all, Nobodies didn't bleed; rather their shell was damaged. The Nobody put his sitar away and started to walk towards the large opening to get a potion. It didn't help the damage, as the wound was irreparable, but it did stop the pain. The sitar vanished in his hands as he extended it, the solid frame turning into bubbles of water.

Leaping off the ledge with his usual gusto, Demyx continued on his way. The deep thoughts that had been brewing within his mind had vanished and he was back into his immature nature. After all, such thoughts and emotions were frowned on in the Organization and Demyx wasn't intelligent enough to hold such futile thoughts within his head. Besides, that information was quietly tucked away in his non-existent heart, simply waiting to be unveiled when Kingdom Hearts was opened.

Humming a small tune to himself, Demyx paused as he stopped walking up the stairs. The Organization member cocked his head to the side as he looked out the window. Amid the falling raindrops there lay a single dusk, its form writhing back and forth. The very scene puzzled Demyx, as the lower ranked Nobodies never stopped moving.

Demyx walked back down to the window, staring at the creature in awe. He opened a portal of darkness behind him and he glided through it, reappearing beside the creature. Cocking his head to the side, Demyx inspected the twitching creature thoughtfully. The whole situation was impossible! How could a Dusk be so weak and deprived of energy?

Staring at the lesser Nobody bizarrely, Demyx drew his sitar. The cloaked man prodded the Nobody a little bit, watching its body squirm. The sight of the thing sickened him as it looked almost as though it were about to die.

"I'd better leave it," he muttered to himself. "Xenmas might get mad at me if I bring it in."

As Demyx turned to leave, a lightning bolt shot down behind him. The Organization member jumped, startled at the very sound of it. Being the coward he was, Demyx jumped to the wet ground, his face slamming into the concrete; a quivering mass of…well…Demyx.

"Owww…" he moaned as he clutched his nose.

He slowly rose to his feet, turning around to face the Dusk. Except…it wasn't a Dusk anymore. Lying in front of him was a bare naked girl, curled into a small ball. She had short blond hair and was breathing, if only barely.

Fearfully and quickly, Demyx poked the girl's cheek with his hand, finger gently bouncing off of a small patch of flesh. Shuddering slightly, Demyx backed away from the thing on the ground. He then turned around and ran like he usually did. Who knew what this thing was; let alone what it could do to him.

As he was seconds away from the portal that had just formed, Demyx turned around to face the dusk-turned-woman. A strange feeling went over him, a feeling that he couldn't describe at the time. However, he bent over her body and picked it up, her limp form collapsing in his arms. Demyx looked down at her naked body and shuddered again. He felt like a rapist.

But still, something about this girl was special.

"What are you?" he muttered towards her form.

His unanswered question echoed in the darkness, it's very essence collapsing in the rain. However, an answer lurked would soon approach him and it would change Demyx's life completely.

**Larxene, Number 12. **


	2. The Great pretender

** Author's Note: **Roxas is going to seem like an ass in this chapter because...well, that's his character. If you look at the flashbacks in KH2, he betrayed the Organization for his own desires, making him greedy. Ah well, I'm not the judge of him! Enjoy the chapter. 

**Part 2**

_It was a field on that fateful day so long ago; the reeds of it blew gently in the breeze. As he waded through the grass, he saw the blossoming and blooming flowers of spring awakening from their winter slumber. The boy walked into a wide meadow, his bare feet gently touching the grass that was pleasant and soft. He gently yawned as he turned his head towards her, a wide smile on his face._

_"So; you've come again, have you?" he asked as he gently sipped a small glass of lemonade._

_Running. Sweating._

_Them._

_Chasing._

_Her._

_Stealing._

_Snatching._

_Ripping._

_Tearing._

_Crying._

_Her._

_Darkness._

0.0.0.0.0.0

"Demyx! Get the hell out of the way!"

The fierce words of Demyx's ally echoed into the Nobodies' ears as the firing of an American gun shot by them. Demyx bit his lip feverishly from his crouched position in the large bush. Once again, he had made an unfortunate mistake at a critical time that jeopardized his mission. Besides, his ally, though new to the organization was a natural at fighting. Demyx could only fathom the humiliation of the Organization as he saw the new member stare at him in disgust.

"The others were right," he said in his normally calm tone. "You are useless."

They called him Roxas, Number 13. He was a bit younger than Demyx, but was much more talented than him, as he wielded two key shaped swords with great ease. Out of all of the Organization members, Roxas seldom spoke at all, only saying things when absolutely necessary. He never showed any emotion, but was disturbingly sadistic in attacking his enemies. The very presence of Roxas made Demyx uneasy and it was anyone's guess why they had been put on a team together.

Perhaps it had been more of Xenmas' sadism, but it was most likely the fact that both of them had the lowest mission success ratings within the past month. Roxas had just recently joined the Organization and had received no missions, making his success rate zero automatically; and Demyx was just an all around failure. The younger boy eyed Demyx with even more contempt as a portly man behind the bush they were hiding in pointed in their direction. The cocking of guns was heard as Demyx let out a pathetic whimper.

Roxas gritted his teeth as he gave Demyx a solemn look of disgust. He then drew his two keyblades and stood out of the bush, deflecting every single bullet with both of his weapons. The men before him gave a shout of surprise and backed away from him slowly, dropping their guns and running into the thick underbrush, their feet frantic in the hasty sounds they made as they clambered through the dense foliage. Demyx let out a sigh of relief as he stared at Roxas with awestruck eyes.

"You're really good!" he said.

"Hmm?" asked Roxas as he turned towards his comrade, the same calm look embodied on his face.

"I mean at fighting and all," said Demyx quickly. "You sure showed those guys!"

"What does it matter?" questioned the blond as he sheathed his two keyblades into his black cloak.

"Well, you've only been in the Organization for a short time, so I thought I would want to congratulate you! After all, I mean that-''

"How long have you been in the Organization anyways?" demanded Roxas as he interrupted the older boy.

"Um….." began Demyx. Truth be told, he had stopped counting a while ago. Nobodies didn't age or grow, so he considered the whole aspect of keeping track of time useless. "I really don't know…"

"That's that the point," snapped Roxas.

"Then why'd you bring it up?" asked Demyx, his voice showing slight confusion.

There was a short silence, in which Roxas let out a short emotionless laugh.

"I've been here a week Demyx," said the blond. "A week. Seven days. Let's compare that to how long have you been here for, shall we?"

"Um….." began Demyx. The red haired adolescent was starting to catch onto what Roxas was talking about, but the words still eluded him.

"You're ranked #9, aren't you?" demanded Roxas.

"Well, yeah…"

"What does that mean exactly?" Roxas' words pierced into Demyx's heart viciously.

"I guess it means when we joined the Organization…" said Demyx slowly, his childish mind gradually understanding the ranking system.

"Well, then my point is proven," said Roxas flatly. "You're useless."

"Ah…." Started Demyx slowly. He had been wrong; Roxas was just like Xaldin and Saïx.

"I've read your files in your little 'Proof of existence' and you haven't completed a single mission to date. Your fighting style is terrible and you usually shirk work to practice that useless sitar of yours," snarled Roxas.

"It's not useless!" stammered Demyx, his voice cracking.

"It's as useful as you are," said Roxas, with a small smirk. "I can't believe I thought you were my superior! What a fool I was!"

"Um…" said Demyx, his voice quavering. Roxas was hurting his feelings and he began to snivel in his usual pathetic manner.

Roxas rolled his eyes as he saw Demyx's tears.

"Wipe them away," he snarled. "Don't even try to fake emotions."

"But…you're such a mean person!" sobbed Demyx, as he continued to snivel.

"We're Nobodies," said Roxas angrily. "And we don't have emotions. Why do you even bother to pretend that you have them? You're only deluding yourself."

Roxas glared at Demyx through passive eyes. The older orange haired adolescent stared at him, his lower lip quivering. This 'Number 13' had crossed the line. He had gone too far. Demyx's hand balled into a fist and he glared at Roxas with all of his might, forcing himself to show the emotion of hatred. It was extremely hard for a Nobody to show any emotion at all, but Demyx had successfully mastered the art of it. He would simply conjure up strong memories that featured the emotion and he would try to relieve the feelings of the moment. The simple memories meant everything to Demyx, as he viewed them as a window back into his old life.

"…Stop," said Demyx.

"Stop what?" asked Roxas in a snide tone.

"Shut up!" yelled Demyx, anger fuelling his voice. "You're a Nobody too and you should know how it feels…..how it feels to be an empty void! These emotions are the thing that bridges us between normal people. Don't you want to be normal? Don't you want to be accepted by everyone else?"

Roxas sighed, as he shook his head.

"You're a fool," he said simply. "You delude yourself in your own prattles."

Demyx gave Roxas a cold stare. The other boy had just ignored everything he had said.

"I don't want you to talk for the rest of this mission," said Roxas. "You'll just annoy me."

"But…"

"Not buts," snapped Roxas. "I'll personally kill you if speak out of turn. I doubt anyone back home'll give a damn anyways."

That was true. Save for Luxord, as he and Demyx were friends (as close as Nobodies could be to friends anyways). But practically everyone else in the Organization saw Demyx as a nuisance. Even the new girl that Demyx had saved just over a month ago had become like everyone else, sadistic and cruel (disturbingly more so than the rest.). She was always crammed up in the library up at Marluxia's "private resort" that he had begged Xenmas to have. The girl would often lock herself in the study, reading books about graphic killing and violence. Her very presence terrified Demyx.

The Nobody stared back at Roxas, trying to look bold in front of his superior.

"…Okay," he stammered as he offered a hasty bow in Roxas' direction. Truth be told, Demyx wanted to follow Roxas' orders. After all, if this mission was a success, it would bump his success rate up.

"Just stay out of my way," muttered Roxas as he drew his hood up.

The two of them silently walked through the dense green foliage that blocked their passageway. Demyx gazed at his surroundings as they crossed a shallow ravine, the cool water brushing up against their clothes. Nothing but large trees surrounded the two Nobodies as a gentle breeze blew by them. The older Nobody let out a pleasant sigh as the breeze cascaded across his cloaked form. He was at home in this world; alone in with his natural element.

"You coming?" snarled Roxas. "We wouldn't want to forget our mission, now would we?"

"Um…" Demyx stared at the handy little mission card that Xenmas always gave him. He was extremely forgetful, so each tiny little card had the mission's goal inscribed on it. Unfortunately, Xenmas had a more expanded vocabulary than Demyx did, so the Nobody often stumbled with the 'large words'.

He loftily drew the small plastic card and read the neat black lettering.

"Depart to the land of the leaves to terminate yet another heart juxtaposed to the valiant actions of the bearer of the pure heart," read Demyx, his voice slowing over the lengthy words.

"You don't know what that means?" asked Roxas dully, his eyes glaring at Demyx.

"Um…," said Demyx hastily. "Not really…."

"You really are an idiot, aren't you?" asked Roxas. "You missed the briefing because you were practicing your stupid sitar again."

Luxord had told Demyx what they had had to do. They were to go to the "Land veiled in leaves" and take the heart of a certain Govenor Ratcliff. Apparently, he had been tainted by darkness like many before him and seemed to be a fine candidate for the gathering of hearts. After all, he was a bearer of the keyblade and he could gather hearts. Additionally, when they took Ratcliff's heart, they would also claim the shell left behind to add to their army of Nobodies.

"Next time come to the meetings," snarled Roxas. "You'll make the Organization look like a child's group."

Demyx hastily nodded as Roxas drew Oathkeeper and Oblivion. Demyx winced as he stared at the shining aura that emanated from the tip of Oathkeeper. He was used to dwelling in the darkness, so the keyblade blinded him. However, he had been informed about how useful the weapon was and it ensured all of the members of the Organization ample time to reclaim their hearts. Thus, he remained silent as Roxas hacked through the dense trees that barred their passageway.

It took an entire day for Roxas to successfully cut a passageway that lead to Ratcliff's camp. The boy seemed to have unlimited stamina and he never showed his exhaustion, even as he continued to plow through several trees. Demyx had been told to wait by the water as Roxas infiltrated the American camp, madly slashing his way through any soldier that reached his body. The musician had been told that he was useless and he had been cast aside like a stone. However, this didn't bother him much, as Demyx was used to the neglection from his teammates back home.

The Nobody kicked his feet in the water, the liquid soaking through his boots. He relaxed as he felt the coolness of the water gently move between his toes. Demyx had been fortunate on this world; as there was actually water for him to manipulate. Drawing his sitar, the musician began to gently pluck its strings, watching the water dance before him. The images they formed vibrated for each gentle chord as they danced a simple skim across the water, some disappearing slightly. Music was his life and was also one of the few things that he could take joy in these days. It was an escape passageway; a way that he could link back to his old life: before he had lost his heart.

Suddenly, a flying white object smacked Demyx in the head, causing him to stop playing. The water forms vanished back into the water, the enticing music coming to an abrupt halt. The thing coiled around Demyx's head, its movements smooth and frantic. Demyx quickly clawed at his face as the thing swirled around his head, its hands latching onto it.

"That tickles!" complained Demyx loudly as the creature continued to zoom around his face.

Roxas came out of the clearing, his body bathed in crimson blood. A slight smile was on his face as he sat down on a rock. Several holes were in his body; almost as though that he had been riddled with bullets. The boy gently tossed a bloody round object towards Demyx's head. The object smacked the white creature off of his face as Demyx looked in disgust at Ratcliff's severed head.

"That was fun," said Roxas idly.

Demyx let out a strangely feminine scream as the head slid down his body. He quickly tossed the head to the side, causing it to smack into a severed tree. The boy looked frantically at Roxas with disgust.

"You're so immature," said Roxas boredly.

"So…what did Ratcliff yield?" asked Demyx slowly as he winced at the bloody head.

"Not much," said Roxas nonchalantly. "Just that Dusk who has a fetish for your ugly little head."

Demyx eyed the Dusk with a small smile. It seemed rather friendly for a dusk anyways. He would be a good selection for the prize for his card game with Luxord. Usually after the mission report, the two would gamble off the spoils that they had obtained during the mission in card games. Luxord would always win, but Demyx always had his faith to back him up.

Roxas eyed Demyx with intense dislike as he opened a dark portal back to the World that Never Was. He had half the mind to kill Demyx there. But then again; they were team members. Even though Demyx didn't contribute anything to their team at all. Roxas sighed as he called Demyx over. His first mission was a complete success, but his partner had been an utter failure.

0.0.0.0.0

It was nearing midnight in the World that Never was. The vibrant night life exposed radiant lights that sparkled on the dark streets juxtaposed to the grim and foreboding nature of the ominous castle in the horizon; that pallid castle that gently floated above the sky, never moving; yet always growing.

Deep within the castle, three figures sat around a pure white table within a pure white room. Their black cloaks identified them as Nobodies, as their hoods were all withdrawn. All three of them were male and none spoke at all, simply staring at the oversized cards that lay in front of them. The clock's ticking gently pounded as the large brass finger reached midnight.

The tension between the three figures was intense as the eldest figure stared at his own cards, his eyes staring at them with an odd sort of satisfaction. He smirked at the two other figures from his cloak as he stared at the large number of cards that lay face up in the center of the table. The man looked at his two comrades with a sinister gleam in his eyes as he pointed a gloved finger at the accumulating pile in the centre of the table.

"One two," he said.

A large card flew from the several cards that were circling him. Two small Organization insignia's dotted it as it landed softly onto the card pile. The youngest figure flinched as he stared at the large card, sipping his glass of juice. There was no possible way he could top it. The figure swore under his breath as he withdrew his hood, revealing a small lump of messy orange hair.

"I fold," growled Demyx as he stared at the shining munny.

"Good," said Luxord with a smile. "Only one person to go until I claim all of the munny in the pot."

"Don't count on that old man," muttered Axel.

Demyx stared at his now useless cards idly as he swallowed another gulp of lemonade. He had loved the citrus juice when he had been human, and now was no different. Nobodies were incapable of taste, as they could not feel. However, Demyx had mastered his emotions as well as his senses, so he could clearly taste his favourite drink. He could taste in the same way that he could feel emotions; by harnessing the memories of what they were. Luxord eyed Demyx with bewilderment as the Nobody licked his lips.

"I still don't understand how you can taste that," said Luxord.

"I just do," said Demyx simply as he turned to Axel.

In truth, the beverage was going nowhere inside Demyx's body. He was a Nobody; a shell of sorts, and had no internal organs at all. His body and face were a guise for the void that lay inside of him. It was the simple skin of a human that prevented the void from flying everywhere.

"Your turn," muttered Luxord as he gently tossed a dice up and down.

President was best played with at least three people, so Luxord usually invited one other person to play with them. Today, Axel had been invited to the card game and he had brought 30 pieces of munny for the pot. Luxord had simply placed his lucky dice in the pot, while Demyx had brought his benign Dusk for it.

"Well, let's see," said Axel craftily as he admired his hand.

To Demyx, Axel was a joker. He was always the life of the party and was obnoxious and rude. However, he had an outstanding mission success rate that astounded every other member. Though he seemed to be a complete idiot at times, he was a crafty fellow who could easily play on one's emotions. Axel was an enigma to say the least who acted completely different from the way he spoke. Demyx didn't have any bad blood with Axel, nor did Axel to he, but there was always an uncertain ray around Axel's body. Such a thing made Demyx confused and uneasy.

"I'll burn that," said Axel with a laugh.

Both Luxord and Demyx rolled their eyes. The pun was awful.

Axel laughed triumphantly one of the many cards that circled him slammed into Luxord's face up card, the collision destroying both cards in a radiant explosion of fire. The flames scorched the entire table, causing Luxord to snarl at Axel.

"What's wrong?" asked Axel as he put on a face of mock surprise.

"You don't see me destroying your chakrams," snarled Luxord as one of the cards circling around Axel sliced at his cloak.

"Sourpuss," muttered Axel as he evaded the attack with a simple flick of his wrist.

Demyx stared at the two fighting. Such was common among the Organization members as their conflicting personas often caused rivalries and battles. Some times, many members had been close to death as their comrades turned against them to 'teach them their place in the world.' Demyx and Marluxia were often the ones who received this cruel initiation. However, due to Marluxia's latest brown-nosing ability (which had caused Xenmas to give him Castle Oblivion), most of this initiation had been passed onto Demyx. Death threats were now almost too common.

The card game went on for several more rounds, until Axel finally dropped his hands to his sides, a look of disgust on his usually perky face. Axel muttered profanities under his breath as he turned to his two companions.

"I yield," he said as he gazed at his lone remaining card. "Stupid three."

Luxord smiled maliciously towards Axel as the cards around the Nobody vanished in black smoke. All of the prizes within the pot began to accumulate around the eldest Nobody, who smiled with glee.

"Looks like I win again," said Luxord. "A pleasure gentlemen; as always."

"Hmph," said Axel as he turned away from Luxord. "Show off."

"Look who's the sourpuss now," laughed Luxord.

"Good game though," said Demyx, retaining his optimism.

"Pfft, whatever," muttered Axel.

"What's gotten you down anyways?" asked Demyx. Axel usually wasn't a sore loser and he always maintained a cocky yet accepting attitude.

"That little wench that joined us a month ago," grumbled Axel.

"Didn't you just complete a mission with her?" asked Luxord.

"Yup," said Axel angrily. "That was a whole 10 hours of my life I'll never get back."

"She couldn't have been that annoying," said Luxord.

"You have no idea," growled Axel. "She was playing mind games with me throughout the entire recon mission, twisting my words against me and all that."

"Well…" began Demyx. "Maybe we aren't used to her yet. Let's give her another chance."

"Wait until you have her with you in a mission," snarled Axel as he slammed a chakram into the ground. "She's like Saïx and Xigbar combined in the worst way."

Luxord snapped his fingers idly as the Dusk behind him transformed into a gambler, a large oversized hat flopping onto its head and cards replacing its disappearing hands. The creature flopped to the ground, surprised at its new body.

"Both of them?" asked Demyx, his voice quavering.

"Yep," said Axel grimly. "She also has these strange ways of hurting you from the inside. It makes you feel like you had a heart, except that she owns it. It's like having your heart crushed in front of your own body, akin to being killed on the inside."

Demyx shuddered as he heard Axel's words. The trembling boy summoned his sitar and held in reassuringly towards his body. It usually gave him support, even though it was an inanimate object.

"She's a sadist to the core," muttered Axel as he got up from his chair. "Believe me; you do not want to be in a team with her."

The Nobody brushed back his cloak, allowing his crimson red hair to be blown by the night wind from outside the castle. His chakrams disappeared into his cloak as he headed towards the white opening that led to the room known as "Proof of Existence." The Nobody stared back at his two comrades, putting his hands over his head in a relaxed manor.

"I'm goin' to see Roxas," said Axel.

"Who's Roxas?" asked Luxord.

"The new guy," muttered Demyx. He still hadn't healed his grudge against the 13th member since their mission that had happened earlier that day.

"Oh yeah…" said Luxord. "How'd your mission go?"

"I don't wanna talk about it," said Demyx.

"He's that bad?" asked Axel, pausing slightly.

"Probably not as bad as that Larxene girl that you were talking about, but I just don't get along with him," said Demyx with a sigh.

"To each's own," said Axel, shrugging his shoulders.

The Nobody walked through the portal, his body vanishing with the gales of darkness that lurked inside. Luxord lazily watched the Gambler Nobody play with its cards, a small token of affection (or anything close to it) within the eldest man's eyes.

"Pretty cute thing, eh?" he asked Demyx.

"Oh….yeah," said Demyx distantly.

"You're upset," said Luxord flatly. "It's easy to tell."

"We're Nobodies though," said Demyx quietly. "We don't have emotions."

Luxord sighed as he shook his head.

"Is that what Roxas said to you?" he asked.

"Something like that," said Demyx quietly. "Is all I do pointless? This charade of emotions; is it wrong?"

Luxord shook his head again.

"Roxas is just jealous that you have emotions," said Luxord. "Just remember Demyx; you're different from the rest of us. You actually have emotions. Don't let anyone else convince you otherwise."

Demyx smiled back at his friend as he picked up his sitar. He wished he could believe every word that came out of Luxord's mouth, but then he would be lying to himself. The Nobody gave Luxord a final wave as he opened a portal to darkness. All he wanted now was to be alone and play his sitar.

Moments later, Demyx emerged in a deserted bar. No one, save for a few Dusks, ever came in here; as every building in the World that Never Was was abandoned. The buildings were just like the Nobodies; lifeless shells with no soul or life inside. It was a lonely and distant place that Demyx often retreated to escape from his worries. Him and his sitar filled the place with life whenever he played a small tune. With no audience, save for a few dusks who were attracted to the music, Demyx enjoyed this solitude more than anything.

The Nobody wandered through the deserted musty bar using his hands to feel his way through the darkness. He then finally found his usual resting spot; the small karaoke stage next to a large moldy futon. With a sigh of relaxation he summoned his sitar and began to play a small grim melody that pierced the darkness and silence of the room. The mellow tune squeezed its way through the open doorway of the karaoke bar, seeming to mingle with the cold night wind.

But the door hadn't been open when Demyx had arrived.

And Dusks couldn't use doors either. They simply slid underneath the wooden frame.

Someone human was here.

Someone humanoid at least.

Demyx realized this slowly as he dropped his sitar to the ground. He heard the screech of the door as it closed, a figure in a black cloak holding the door handle. The figure walked through the darkness, unveiling its hood to reveal a girl no older than 17. She had deep cerulean eyes and her bright face was twisted into a disturbing black smirk. Demyx backed away slowly, trying to make his sitar vanish.

However, he was too slow and the figure snatched it from his arms, her lithe body moving extremely quickly. Demyx fumbled in the air for his instrument as he saw the girl stare at it with satisfaction.

"Give it back!" he whined.

The girl stared at him, an evil smile on her face.

"You're number #9 in the Organization, aren't you?" she sneered.

"Well…yeah," said Demyx slowly, slight fear in his voice.

"The Melodious Nocturne?" she asked in a mocking tone.

"Um…yeah," said Demyx. This girl freaked him out completely. "Just gimmie back my sitar!"

"No," said the girl. "I don't think you're good enough to have it back."

"B-but…"

"No buts," said the girl as she snapped her fingers. The sitar vanished from sight.

"…What right do you have to take what's not yours?" demanded Demyx angrily.

"Every right," said the girl. "Name's Larxene. You should do yourself well to remember it."

Demyx stared at the girl in horror. She was exactly the way Axel had described her; cold and horrible on the inside. He vainly tried to summon his sitar, but it didn't work, causing the Nobody to fall flat on his face.

"If you had actually trained, you wouldn't need this stupid weapon," snarled Larxene.

"It's not stupid…" said Demyx, his words trailing off within his head. Music gave him life and spirit. To take it away was an awful insult.

"You're as worthless as the others say you are," laughed Larxene. "Roxas was right about you."

Larxene headed towards the door, looking back at the disgruntled Demyx.

"When are you going to give me back my sitar?" he demanded.

"When you can best me in battle," said Larxene. "However, I don't that's happening anytime soon. They say that you can't fight, even if you have your weapon. Its evident now that those rumors were true."

This left Demyx speechless. The Nobody stared after Larxene as she opened the door to the raining city that lay out of it. She winked at Demyx, her face twisting into a sadistic grin.

"I heard another rumour too," said Larxene. "That you try to pretend that you have emotions. What a pathetic effort on your part. You're just like a plastic marionette, that tries to get over the fact that it's plastic. You'll never become a real person, no matter how hard you pretend it. When Kingdom Hearts opens, I doubt you'll even be alive to get it."

"…Plastic?" asked Demyx.

"You heard me," laughed Larxene. "You're fake. The emotions you harbor are fake. Everything about your demeanor is fake. Stop trying to be what you're not, you pathetic little…"

Demyx then lunged toward Larxene, trying to grab his sitar that was within her cloak. Tears were evident in his eyes as he futilely crashed to the ground. Larxene easily side stepped it as she kicked his sobbing form over.

"Face me again when you're able to beat me," she laughed as she disappeared within a portal of darkness.

Demyx fumbled to grab her body, but it was pointless as she had already vanished. The Nobody walked back to the karoke stage, sitting down at its side. Music was a part of his soul; and to take it away made him feel empty. Any life that had once been in the bar had been killed, only leaving the shells of things that remained. Demyx laughed to himself bitterly as he evaluated the irony of the situation.

He was a musician without his instrument.

A person without a soul.

A true Nobody. To the end.

Thus he sat there, all night long; alone on the karoke stage.


	3. The void with hope

Author's Note: Hey everybody. Thanks for the reviews (I like reviews, they make me feel warm and special!). Special thanks go to Little Debbie, as I use one of your perceptions of Demyx's battle with Larxene. Oh yeah and the first person who says which Disney movie the world Roxas and Demyx visited was based on gets a cookie!

**Part 3**

_It was a field on that fateful day so long ago; the reeds of it blew gently in the breeze. As he waded through the grass, he saw the blossoming and blooming flowers of spring awakening from their winter slumber. Myde walked into a wide meadow, his bare feet gently touching the grass that was pleasant and soft. The youth gently yawned as he turned his head towards her, a wide smile on his face._

_"So; you've come again, have you?" Myde asked as he gently sipped a small glass of lemonade._

_The rest was a blur._

_The next thing he had known, he was running with her. Their frantic footsteps brushed across the soft reeds as they darted back through the chaotic meadow. Pure sweat dribbled down both of their backs as the creatures continued their pursuit, their claws trying to snatch at the two's very essences, hoping to transfigure their victim's souls into additions to their legions. _

_Myde stared back at the vicious black creatures in utter horror as their pace intensified. Small antennas poked out of their rounded hellish heads, while putrid empty and glowing eyelids stared back at both of them. Though they had childish features throughout all of their bodies, their claws were stained with crimson blood. Were they not being chased, Myde would have laughed at such a creature and its abnormal shape. However, circumstances were different and Myde had learned to fear these creatures. _

_As they ran throughout the streets, Myde stared around him as he saw the very world around him eclipsing. Darkness was enveloping the now empty cars and stalls, as innocent people were devoured by the oncoming blackness. Practically no one could escape the envelope of darkness that was shrouding the city; as their world (like many) had been tied to the darkness. Completely eclipsed._

_Within all of the panic, he fell, his form tripping over a divot in the cement ground. His reaction was terrible and the heartless behind him easily devoured his heart. _

_The rest was a blur._

_Stealing._

_Snatching._

_Ripping._

_Tearing._

_Crying._

_Her._

_Darkness._

0.0.0.0.0.0_  
_

It had been a long and stormy night, with the rain pounding down on the hollow streets of the World That Never Was. The very pure water droplets made dry echoes as they drummed upon the black pavement of the empty streets, its fearsome rhythm pounding against the lifeless doors of the shops and stalls. This weather was ceaseless and consistent, thus making it nothing out of the norm. The world was a mere shell after all, just like the Nobodies that inhabited it. It was just the vestiges of several worlds that had been destroyed by the heartless, a lifeless illusion.

Xemnas had created the world because of his bizarre poetic obsession. Apparently it was the 'ultimate metaphor' or something along those lines. Through his great power, he had scoured through the remnants of worlds, searching for random pieces of debris that he could use to sculpt the dark world that would lie beneath his gigantic pallid castle. The entire process was almost like a game to Xemnas and he enjoyed creating his mock town thoroughly, laughing at every iota of space. It was a joke that only those who were extremely perceptive would understand; as it mocked the very essence of human life. Perhaps it was aimed at his old master; DIZ. Still, no Organization member ever asked Xemnas the purpose of the joke, for he only laughed and said nothing else. Fear also attributed to this, as everyone in the Organization had no respect for their leader; they simply feared his power.

Demyx was the same as all of them. Though the power didn't tempt him at all, it was more of a small hatred for Xemnas. The man simply used all of the Organization members as pawns for the completion of Kingdom Hearts. It was as simple as that and he rarely talked to any of them, except for Saïx.

Saïx was completely different from all of the other Organization members as he was Xenmas' right hand man. He was often used as the mouthpiece for the superior and looked down on all of the other members as pawns. Unlike every other member of the Organization, Saïx never received any missions. Rather, he obeyed personal requests from Xenmas and listened to no one but the superior. As a result, he wasn't very popular amongst the other members of the Organization and many people only talked to him if it was absolutely necessary. Demyx still feared him though, as he was the strongest member of the Organization physically.

Saïx, like Larxene, Xaldin and Roxas would often taunt Demyx about his inferiority. The taunts from all of them were the same, though Larxene had been the only one to actually take something from him. The very feeling of being robbed was extremely horrible, but to Demyx; it was more than just petty theft. It was his soul.

Being a musician, to Demyx; music was his passion: his heart. It was practically the only thing that gave him the very will to continue his charade of emotions. Though he was but a shell, his music gave him real emotion and filled his empty body full of expression and devotion. It was a portal for his thoughts and by playing his music, the thoughts that he conjured up came to life in front of his eyes; in the form of water clones.

Demyx hardly remembered his birth as a Nobody. All he could remember was the darkness tearing at his body and ripping at his soul. Then there was darkness. The next thing he remembered, he was in a black cloak and could control water. His memories from his past life had been practically erased, and he could only remember small snippets of it. However, surprisingly, these memories were slowly flooding back into his mind, though Demyx had no idea why.

Why had he even been strong enough? What had motivated him to cling back onto life, even though his heart, his very soul, had been stolen? All Nobodies had that will to exist and live, but they needed a purpose to retain their human form; a desperate cling to life. It was a simple will that had to astound death and continue from that point. Demyx wondered if he had ever possessed a will for life that strong in the first place.

For the entire night, Demyx idly sat at the karoke stage, his body not moving at all. Nobodies did not require sleep, due to the fact that they were just shells. Usually, Demyx would continue to play his sitar all night, composing new songs to incorporate his emotions into. He would enjoy watching the small water clones dance around in circles to his gentle sitar pluckings, their grace illuminated in the moonlight. It was a peaceful feeling and it reminded him of his life as a human, under the stars with his guitar. It reminded him of home. But mostly; it encouraged him to keep working for the Organization, so he could reclaim his heart and stop his charade.

But with no muse, he was useless. All the motivation within his usually optimistic and perky attitude was destroyed and a sense of numbness overcame his soul. This was the first time that he had felt nothing in his entire life. He felt like a weak dusk, who couldn't even fight properly. He was now exactly as Larxene had stated he was: plastic.

When she had called him that, he had felt great rage. He had been trying so hard, with mastering his little charade, and he had put so much work into composing his music; all for the sake of being normal. Though he was a nobody, he wanted to be treated just like everyone else; like a human being. He wanted to fit in so desperately.

But without his sitar; he was nothing. His muse for emotion and life had been stolen from him, as had his passion and his soul. He was nothing more than a limp rag doll, simply accepting orders and carrying them out. However, without his very essence for life; what was the point of even obeying the missions? Was it fear of the other members, or was the fact that he was simply a follower, that would drive him to continue working for Organization XIII? If those were all to be true, he would simply work back into Larxene's hands and become the plastic mannequin that she had described him as.

Being called plastic was worse than being called useless to Demyx. She had been directly insulting all of his efforts; his efforts to try and have emotions. By saying that he was plastic, she was clearly stating that he felt nothing and reacted to nothing. She said that he was fake and had the same value as a plastic toy, completely void of any human action and worth. Her sharp words had pierced deeply into his heart (lest he even had one) and tore his optimism to shreds.

Throughout the entire night, Demyx thought these repeated thoughts over and over again. For once, he wished that he actually trained with the others, instead of shirking work. If he had, he might have even been able to prevent his sitar from being stolen. As the eternal moonlight from the forever black sky loomed over Demyx, the Nobody feebly had tried to conjure his water clones. However, there was no passion behind any of his calls and he eventually gave up, his shattered soul linking to the omni-present darkness that swirled around him.

0.0.0.0.0.0

Demyx slowly walked to the towering pallid castle many hours later, the full moon still looming overhead of him. Time was non-existant in the World that Never Was and an eternal night blanketed the dim streets. It was yet another part of the 'multiple step metaphor' that Xemnas had created in his world. As a result of this never ending darkness, most of the Organization members didn't bother counting the days and nights, save for the intellects: Zexion and Vexen.

The red haired adolescent closed his eyes sadly as he stared at the looming building that he called home. What was he going to tell Saïx, now that his only weapon had been stolen? He knew that the older man wouldn't listen to him, as he despised Demyx and viewed him as an inferior ant that could be crushed easily. Demyx sighed slightly as he waited for the ivory moat of the castle to lower. It was going to be an extremely long day (or at least an estimate of one.).

A lone Dusk was charged with operating the gate. All it had to do was step onto a pressurized pad and the moat would extend to the ground, allowing any Nobody to enter the castle. However, this Dusk could easily detect friends from foes and as a result, it would only step on the pressurized pad if it did not sense light, nor darkness. Vexen had trained the creature himself, by baiting it with a cookie. Of course, Vexen later found out, after many attempts, that Dusks could be quite lethal if one let their guard down. He sported a rather nasty crack across his face.

Nobodies didn't bleed, as they had no substance inside of their shells. It was merely a small soul that was confided to a human shape. However, the shell could easily crack and dent, thus making no Nobody invincible. Unbeknownst to every member in the Organziation, the keyblade masters would prove this theory gladly as they would cut through each member with a disturbing glee, savagely destroying them for the purpose of 'light.' Demyx's fate would be the same, and all of desires would die with his body, all of his hopes and dreams linked to it. After all, Nobodies were destined to fade into the darkness of whence they came.

The Dusk at the watch post noticed Demyx and slid its body towards the pressurized pad, its slippery form almost tripping over the crisp and shiny glowing pad that was inscribed with the symbol of the Organization. The symbol shone down upon Demyx, as it pierced through the night sky. The youth squinted at the light as he heard the crashing sound of the moat falling from the sky, bridging the gap between the flying castle and the cold pavement that lay below it.

Demyx slowly walked up the cold white platform, his hands shaking slightly in their nervousness. The Nobody slowly moved throughout the pure white halls, his eyes darting back and forth in slight panic. It was far too quiet in the castle, but then again, it was never extremely noisy. The Nobodies often kept to themselves, or were on elaborate missions composed by Xemnas for the good and pride of the Organization.

As Demyx continued his walk, he finally came to an outdoor path. He usually enjoyed walking through this area, as he could clearly see the stars that had accumulated overhead. The castle was a large structure and it easily pierced the skyline of the World that Never Was. However, this was not without a purpose, as it shielded Kingdom Hearts from the view of any non-Nobody that happened to travel through to Xemnas' world.

The youthful Nobody idly stared to the night sky as he felt the warm glow of the heart shaped moon. Kingdom Hearts was its name and its very presence brought joy to every Nobody. A strange purple radiance emitted from it, displaying all of the captive hearts that were used in its creation. It was indeed a labor of love and showed one thing that surpassed the truth of the world below it; teamwork. All of the Organization members had been working together, despite their differences and hatreds for each other. They shared a common desire and a dream: to be whole again and reclaim what had been stolen from them.

It seemed like a harmless endeavor at first. The members of the Organization would extract hearts from various heartless around the many worlds. They would simply destroy the creatures by use of their self constructed weapons (which had all been tweaked by Vexen to allow them to destroy the heartless.). However, such a task had been extremely tedious, as the hearts that the heartless consumed were extremely weak and were useless in the creation of Kingdom Hearts. The various members were slightly discouraged as they cut through thousands of heartless, attempting to harvest their hearts that they had stolen from countless amounts of people.

But this task had become easier as of late. Recently, the key bearer had been discovered on Destiny Islands and had been evicted from his home. The group that was said to be controlling the heartless (Xemnas called them mere pawns) had been vanquished by the key bearer. But still, the key bearer was continuing his quest to seal all of the keyholes, evicting thousands of heartless of their hearts. His whereabouts now were unknown, as he was last seen on the long road to Castle Oblivion. Xemnas had told Marluxia not to meddle with the key bearer, but Demyx doubted that #11 would listen.

Sora was doing the task that many Organization members could not. He was gathering the hearts of many souls with his keyblade, releasing them to be attached to Kingdom Hearts. Vexen had made Kingdom Hearts a magnet for stray hearts, which made their job a little easier.

As Demyx stared up at the large moon, he smiled to himself grimly. How much longer would he have to wait for it to be complete? Perhaps though, it would never be completed at all, due to Marluxia's intended interference. That pessimistic thought pounded through Demyx's head as he opened the pallid white door to the room known as 'Proof of Existance'.

The room acted as a portal towards all of Organization member's rooms. The place was named by Xenmas, as it was 'metaphorically apt', in his own vocabulary. It was possibly the most disturbing place in the entire building, as every portal had a strange aura coming from it, seeming to entice the unwary into it.

Demyx slowly closed his eyes as he walked towards Saïx's door, the moonlight of the veranda shining onto him. He loathed this room with all of his heart, but was forced to enter it due to the mission reports that he had to submit. Saïx handled all of the paperwork that came in from each member and delivered it to Xemnas, who usually stayed in his room, monitoring the growth of Kingdom Hearts. As Demyx slowly walked into Saïx's room, the man greeted Demyx with unusual zeal.

"Hello!" said Saix in a disturbingly bright tone.

"….Um, hi," said Demyx slowly.

"Come on in and take a seat," said Saïx in his disturbing happy tone.

As the moonlight shone into the reflective veranda, a seat was conjured up from one of its beams of light. Demyx uneasily sat down, his hands fidgeting.

"It's good to see you again," said Saïx in his bright tone.

"It's…good to see…you too," stammered Demyx.

"That's great!" shouted Saïx extremely loudly. "I heard about your mission with number 13 and I'll say; that's the first mission you've ever completed!"

Demyx had an obscure moment with himself as nervous sweat began to pour down his back. If Saïx had found out that Roxas had done everything, he would only be prone to more criticism and physical abuse.

"Of course," said Saïx with a small smile. "That's what I would say; if you had actually completed the mission by yourself."

Demyx froze as Saïx said those words. How had the elder Nobody known?

"Do you honestly think that I would believe that you completed a mission without help?" snarled Saïx. "Of course I wouldn't!"

Demyx flinched as he heard Saïx's words.

"So; what shall your punishment be, for filling out a false report?" he asked as he opened a book of paperwork.

"B-but, the report said that I completed the mission with-''

"That was your report. Roxas handed me a more precise report that described each and every one of your failures. Now which one do you think I believed?" asked Saïx with a sarcastic smile.

_"That little rat!"_

Demyx stared at Saïx in dull shock as he had heard those words. Roxas had gone out of his way to ruin Demyx's positive mission report. What kind of person did something like that? The teen bit his lip as he heard these words, unaware of Saïx's next action.

There was a small silence, in which Saïx eyed Demyx with disturbingly excited eyes. As the moonlight shone onto the veranda, Saïx's disturbing cat-like smile intensified as the X shaped scar across his face glowed with the power of the moon. At that very second, he punched Demyx with all of his might, the moon beams in his scar amplifying the hit.

Demyx went staggering to the ground, clutching the large crack that now extended from his cheek to his eye. The punch had caught if off guard and his sense of distortion was messed up as he feebly attempted to get back onto his feet. However, the after effects of the moonlight shone on Demyx, halting his movement in an instant. Saïx walked beside his crippled associate, spitting on Demyx's body as he did so.

"No water shield?" he asked dryly. "Usually, you at least try to fend off my attacks."

That had been quite true. Usually when this happened, Demyx would conjure up a water shield at the last second to engulf his entire body. However, this didn't usually last very long and Saïx could easily break through it, sending the accumulated water clones flying in all directions. But Demyx's general lack of effort today seemed bizarre to Saïx. The elder Nobody stared at his cohort in disgust as he stepped on Demyx's chest.

"You're not even trying to fight back?" he asked in a bored tone as he saw Demyx wince in pain. "How astute."

As Saïx continued to crush Demyx he began to ponder unformed thoughts within his head, their wispy tails covering his brain in a bizarre mélange. The elder Nobody eyed Demyx with a wry smile as he looked at the boy's helpless form. There was practically no emotion within the boy at all, no soul or any visible signs of pain. Hurting someone like this….just wasn't fun.

Saïx's sighed as stepped off of Demyx's body, leaving the younger Nobody to gasp for the air that rapidly entered his lungs. The elder Nobody sighed as he opened a small cabinet, revealing a large stack of paperwork. He smiled at Demyx from behind his desk as he opened a folder of neatly arranged manila papers that were all stamped with the Organization's seal.

"Get yourself up," snarled Saïx as he glared at Demyx. "For your punishment, I think I'll give you a mission."

Demyx slowly staggered to his feet, clutching his wounded head. He regarded Saïx's words with a simple nod and staggered towards him, grimacing with each step.

"Normally, I wouldn't have to," began Saïx, "seeing as its break week, but you're an exception."

After a long mission, all of the Nobodies were given 1 week off to do whatever they wanted. It was some sort of stress relief that was supposed to raise morale. Demyx had remembered that meeting clearly, but he still didn't know what any of those words meant and was often confused over the purpose of the break week. He usually looked forward to the week with some optimism, but due to recent events he wasn't looking forward to anything.

"So, what do you want me to do about it?" asked Demyx passively.

"Wait outside," said Saïx. "I'll call you when I've got a mission prepared."

Demyx slowly nodded as he limped back through the dark portal, his new wound slowly healing as the darkness mingled about his face. The portals rejuvenated the Nobodies that passed through them and manipulated the power of darkness to heal any exterior damage that happened to their shells.

It was yet another creation of Vexen's and the man prided every addition to his massive collection of inventions. Such an obsession was often mocked by other members of the Organization, but Vexen didn't mind, as he kept to himself mostly: hiding in the basement of Castle Oblivion, while tinkering with his various inventions. Most considered him a genius, as he had such dedication to his work. However, Demyx considered the man a complete lunatic, as he was extremely anti-social and seldom saw daylight from the windowless basements.

Demyx had rarely spoken to the man, as he often used holographic projections at the meetings to display himself, rather than being there in person. A look of annoyance and pressure seemed to be etched onto his clean shaven face, simply masking the mind of a genius. On the rare occasions in which Demyx saw him in person, he was wandering the halls aimlessly, muttering something about 'scientist's block' whatever that meant. Whenever Demyx tried to engage in a conversation with 'Vex' (Vexen hated that name, stating that it was extremely juvenile, but Demyx ignored him; unsure of what juvenile meant.) the man simply dismissed Demyx as an annoyance, telling him to go away.

As the adolescent walked out of the portal, shaking off the feeling of darkness that had overwhelmed him, he viewed the familiar hallway that he had traversed on mere minutes before. The stars high above him twinkled gently, their forms shimmering under Kingdom Hearts' radiance. Demyx found himself looking at the heart shaped moon again, in dull awe of its graceful form. It glowed a mysterious tint of mauve now, as the keybearer was continually slicing through heartless in his battles with Ansem's heartless.

_"It won't be long now."_

The single thought warmed Demyx's heart as he looked out at the moon. Through all of his depression and worry, Kingdom Hearts still existed for him to remember. Even if he had lost all of his emotions and hope, he could still rely on Kingdom Hearts to warm him. It was something to shoot for.

"Hey sexy," said a lusty voice.

The voice was easily recognized by Demyx as he turned around slowly, his eyes reduced to slits. Usually, these little games amused him slightly or made him extremely angry. But not today. Today, he was completely out of his character and was cynical about practically everything.

"I'm not in the mood," he said as he eyed the girl in front of him.

She was an extremely beautiful young woman that was wearing nothing but a black bra, a thong and fishnet tights. She had bright pink hair that was tied into two frizzy ponytails that extended from the sides of her head. Her eyes were a small shade of blue that seemed both friendly and perky at the same time. A small pouty expression was etched onto her face.

"Sure you aren't," she said in her happy tone. "Come on! We can hit the town and-''

"You're getting worse," said Demyx absent mindedly. "You and I both know that the town below is abandoned. There's not a soul living down there."

The girl gave Demyx a sharp glare her pouty face continuing.

"Don't be like dat Dem-Dem," she said in a pouty tone, her voice growing childish and small. "I hate when Dem-Dem's like dat."

Demyx remained silent, eying the girl with a slight annoyance. Usually, he would have tolerated her presence and perhaps played her a song, but now was different. He wanted to be left alone. The girl seemed to notice Demyx's change in character and stopped talking, her perky eyes looking into his morose ones.

"You're upset about something," she said in a normal tone, all of the perkiness fading from her face.

"You noticed?" asked Demyx dryly. "It took you a while, for someone of your intelligence."

"Hey; you're hard to read sometimes," snapped the girl. "Besides, even people like me make mistakes."

"Easy there," said Demyx, backing away from the girl's scowl. "I didn't mean any offense."

"You should hope you didn't," said the girl impassively. "So; what's eating you?"

Demyx raised his hands in mild surprise.

"This is new," he remarked with a sarcastic laugh. "You're actually showing some sympathy. What's the catch?"

"Catch?" asked the girl. "There is no catch. It's just no fun to practice temptation on someone as naïve as yourself, if they aren't in a happy mood. It's bad for me and you."

"What's naïve mean?" asked Demyx slowly, his mind unable to comprehend the words of the girl that stood in front of him.

The girl sighed and shook her head.

"Never mind," she said with a dismissive wave of her hand. "So; what's wrong with you anyways?"

Demyx merely let out an emotionless laugh.

"Zexion, I'm not telling you; unless you change back to your natural form. I don't want to keep on talking to a prostitute with the personality of a nine year old."

Zexion looked at Demyx in shock as a black mist went over the girl's body.

"This is new," she remarked from the black mist. "You actually addressed me as my name, as opposed to one of your twisted nicknames."

Zexion was the only member of the Organization that could change his shape and voice. His role was to manipulate people and he rarely did any fighting of his own (though Demyx had been told that he was a feared force on the battlefield). Hence; the role of a shapeshifter was essential for him to accomplish several of his assassination tasks that he was entrusted in. Additionally, Zexion often used different personas during his missions. He was a protégé of Vexen, but was fascinated with the human mind, instead of the heart. Being one of Ansem the Wise's students added onto his massive intelligence.

Xenmas hadn't trusted Marluxia at all when the man had received his beloved Castle Oblivion. He had feared that Marluxia, Larxene and Axel would tamper with the keyblade user and try to exploit him for their own personal use. As a result, he had sent Vexen, Zexion and Leaxeus to "chaperone" the neophytes of the Organization. Unfortunately, the older members loathed this idea; as they viewed the 'reckless neophytes' as inferior. The younger members didn't take too kindly to this either and hence; the castle was divided. Zexion and Leaxeus stayed in the massive basement of the castle, while Larxene and Marluxia stayed in the castle's heights. Out of all of them, only Axel and Vexen ventured throughout the castle; as they believed that this war of prejudice was futile in the Organization's manipulation of the keybearer.

Still, throughout his escapades at Castle Oblivion, Zexion loathed the place and he rarely spent any time there, lest it was completely necessary. He often wandered the hallways of the World that Never Was and practiced his transformation skill, training his acting skills on Demyx in the form of a young scantily dressed girl. Demyx would often shamelessly flirt with her, always never knowing that it was Zexion on the other side, who was enduring all of his advances. However, this time Demyx had easily recognized Zexion, which usually never happened.

Demyx was on relatively good terms with Zexion, although the older teenager thought that he was a nuisance at times. They didn't gravely dislike each other, nor would they give their lives for each other. They were simple comrades; acquaintances if you will.

The small girl transformed back into the navy blue haired man, his long thick hair swaggering back and forth, along with a look of discomfort on his face. He looked at Demyx, his voice deep and dark.

"So; what's wrong with you?" he asked.

"It's…about number 12," said Demyx.

Zexion sighed as he knelt over the balcony, gazing at the town below the castle.

"You're having girl troubles?" he asked in his mellow voice. "Then why tell me? I'm a man of strategy, not a-"

"It's not that," interrupted Demyx angrily.

"Then what is it?" asked Zexion placidly, absent mindedly playing with a black flame that had emerged from his gloved hands. "She's quite a handful down at Castle Oblivion. Frankly, I think that she can't stay still. She always locks herself in that library of hers, reading all of those pulpy murder novels, laughing her little butt off."

"She's a…" began Demyx, searching for the word. "Sayist?" he asked Zexion, who sighed.

"Sadist," corrected Zexion.

"Yeah, that's the one!" said Demyx. "Axel told me that too…"

Demyx's sentence trailed off into nothingness as Zexion eyed him with dull amusement.

"A sadist is a person who enjoys inflicting pain on others," said Zexion. "Is that what you were wondering?"

"…Yeah," said Demyx. "How'd you know?"

"I have my ways," said Zexion. "I'm pretty good at reading people's thoughts once I know them well enough."

There was a small silence.

"She stole something from you," said Zexion. "Something precious."

"How..?" began Demyx.

"Well, let's put your feelings into account. You're drifting through our conversation, trying to stop the subject. You're not speaking either, unless I bring up a point. You're also acting abnormal, as though someone has taken a large chunk of your soul and displaced it. Hence; with those basic facts, I can easily determine what you're thinking," said Zexion in a matter-of-factly tone. "Besides, I'm the manipulator; you're not. There's no one who understands the human mind as well as I do."

"You're quite perceptive," remarked Demyx.

"It's my job," said Zexion simply.

There was another small silence. Zexion looked at Demyx with a small smile on his face. He then aimed a punch towards the teen's stomach, managing to stop the punch right before the touched Demyx's cloaked form.

"She stole your sitar," said Zexion simply.

"But…how did you…?" began Demyx.

"It's the one thing that you value most," said Zexion. "Don't argue with me Demyx, you know it's true."

"Aren't you going to reprimand me?" asked Demyx gloomily.

"No," said Zexion, with a small smile on his face

"Really?" asked Demyx, growing anxious. "W-why?"

"Well, usually I would reprimand you and tell you that it was for the best that you lost that sitar, but I have a thing against Larxene. She acts like she's the boss of everyone and thing in Castle Oblivion. Apparently, she's Marluxia's Saïx," said Zexion angrily.

"Well, I guess that's reassuring," mumbled Demyx.

"That's your problem right there," said Zexion. "You're too passive."

"Passive?" asked Demyx, obviously not understanding the word.

"Okay," sighed Zexion, "Let's dumb this down for you. There are three main traits of people in this world. There are passive people who accept everything around them and bend like paper to people's whims and there are aggressive people who bully other people to get their points across."

"So; I should be aggressive with Larxene?" asked Demyx.

Zexion closed his eyes and counted to ten extremely slowly. He was rapidly losing his patience with Demyx.

"No," said Zexion flatly. "Aggressive people are brutes. You don't want to be a brute."

"A…brute?" asked Demyx.

"Yes," said Zexion. "What you want to be is a balance between aggressive and passive. That balance is known as being assertive."

"…How do I do that?" pondered Demyx.

"Well, simply state that the sitar belongs to you. Appeal to her…good side," said Zexion.

"Does she even have a good side?" asked Demyx.

"Probably not," said Zexion. "Oh well, scratch that idea."

"Well, she did say that she was going to give me back the sitar if I could beat her in a fight," said Demyx.

"Are you actually intending on fighting her?" demanded Zexion. "She's one of the fastest fighters I've ever seen. She'll make you into a pin cushion."

"Well, what's my other option?" asked Demyx.

"Good point," said Zexion with a sigh. "Why does everything revolve around pain for that woman?"

"B-because she's a say…say…."

"Sadist."

"That's the one!"

Zexion smiled slightly.

"Listen Demyx, I have to go. Sorry I couldn't have been much help, but I don't want Xenmas catching me out of Castle Oblivion. After all, I've got kids to chaperone."

"You have fun with that Zexy," said Demyx with a smirk.

"For once, I'm happy to hear you say that," said Zexion as a black mist came over his body.

As Demyx was about to leave, the girl from before shouted.

"Show that wench who's boss!" she shouted as she vanished.

Demyx smiled as he heard Zexion's words. A common enemy had given him an ally.

0.0.0.0.0.0 

Within a few seconds, Saïx called a rather lively Demyx back into his room. To Saïx's dismay and/or joy, Demyx was back to his cheery and carefree nature, determined to get his sitar back. Usually, Zexion would taunt him, but the encouragement he had received from the higher ranked Nobody had warmed his heart. He was going to get his sitar back, as soon as the mission was complete.

"I've got a mission for you," said Saïx.

"Where is it?" asked Demyx.

"You're to chart out and map a new world that we have discovered," said Saïx.

"What's it called?" he asked.

"I don't know," said Saïx with a wry smile. "But you'd better watch your back."

"Why?" asked Demyx.

"I doubt there's any life there," smiled Saïx. "It's a dead world."

Demyx looked at Saïx in shock.

"A….dead world?"

"You heard me. One that was consumed by the darkness," smiled Saïx.

"If it's destroyed, then why do you want me to go there?" asked Demyx fearfully.

"Oh, its not busy work," smirked the older Nobody. "Be assured that its not. This is an extremely important mission Demyx, and if you screw this one up; I don't think you'll come back alive."

"Why?" asked Demyx, his voice beginning to rise with panic. "Y-you've got the wrong guy!"

"No," said Saïx with a smile. "I've got the epic hero who survived a dangerous mission with Roxas. I've got the right guy."

"B-but," stammered Demyx.

"You want the briefing, or not?" asked Saïx.

Demyx shut his mouth as he stared at a small sheet of paper. He couldn't make out any of the large words on the paper and the briefing looked like a large blure of text to Demyx.

"Basically all you have to do is shut that world down for good," said Saïx. "There's way too much darkness flowing out of there and it could easily hinder both keybearers."

"How do I do that?" asked Demyx.

At that moment, Saïx handed Demyx a small white orb that glowed dangerously. Demyx recognized the large IV logo on the side, stating that the orb had been made by Vexen.

"I want you to take this bomb wait for it to detonate," said Saïx. "Don't worry, it won't kill you. It'll just envelop the entire world in nothingness, causing every little speck of darkness there to be destroyed."

"How long will the detonation take?" asked Demyx.

"Three days," said Saïx. "But be warned, there are much fouler things than heartless on that world. These things can cut through our shells and will seek you in the night, waiting for their chance to strike."

"Will they intend to do harm to the bomb?" asked Demyx, his voice filled with worry.

"If they get to the bomb, they'll probably have killed you first," said Saïx with a sadistic smile. "Usually, I would assign someone like Xaldin for this job, but he's busy on an extended mission. So; I guess it's your mission."

A large black portal appeared beside Demyx as he pocketed the bomb within his cloak. Demyx slowly walked towards the portal, gazing into the endless void that lay inside of it.

"Wait," said Saïx.

"Hmm?" asked Demyx as he turned around.

"I forgot to tell you about your partner for this job. It's not that I value your life, but I want this mission to be completed successfully, so you're going to be partnered with one of the most lethal warriors the Organization has. You'll need all the help that you can get, as you won't be able to summon Dusks there."

"W-why not?" asked Demyx.

"The world itself is too unstable for Nobodies. That's why we sent you. You're expendable," said Saïx.

"Thanks," said Demyx sarcastically.

"He's right you know," said a familiar voice.

Demyx turned around as he saw the familiar smirking face of a lithe girl with short blond hair. She smiled at Demyx menacingly, as she dangled his sitar from one of her fingers.

"That's your partner," said Saïx. "I'm sure she'll do a good job."

"I plan to," said Larxene, her voice full of confidence.

Demyx smiled slightly as he stared at his sitar that dangled loosely in front of him. It wouldn't be long now.

They stepped into the portal, completely unaware that this mission would change everything.


End file.
